Ecological restoration has traditionally focused on replanting vegetation, often overlooking the vital roles of other organisms, including microbes.
Research from recent PhD graduate, Peter Contos, is putting them back into the picture.
In a first-of-its kind field test, the research team transplanted healthy remnant forest soil containing a range of microbial communities into degraded farm soil that was microbially deficient.
“Our aim was to increase the diversity and volume of microbes that could be found in the soil and gut in microbiome of two common invertebrates, a native beetle and an introduced millipede,” he explains.
The result?
“We found that in areas where we transplanted remnant soil, the invertebrates had more diverse gut microbiomes.”
“These microbes were also found in the soil, suggesting that our restoration method increased the interaction between soil microbes and invertebrate hosts.”
Peter hopes the results will challenge the long-held assumption that restoration efforts need only focus on plant communities.
“If we want to truly restore the breadth of biodiversity, soil transplants may need to be incorporated in situations where soil microbial communities are species poor,” he says.
